CHineseINK

 

 

 

BEING MAORI CHINESE MIXED IDENTITIES – MANYING IP

 

A Marsden-funded research project led by Associate Professor Manying Ip from the School of Asian Studies at The University of Auckland, with support from Professor Margaret Mutu, head of the Department of Maori Studies, has given insight into a previously unexplored area: the evolving dynamics between Maori and Chinese in New Zealand.

The project examined the relationship between Maori as New Zealand’s indigenous people, the tangata whenua, and Chinese as the country’s earliest and most sizeable non-European immigrant group. This relationship was traced from the earliest encounters in the late nineteenth century when it was cordial and close, to contemporary times when it has become more complicated.

The researchers used oral history interviews with elders of both communities, in-depth interviews with young urban Maori and new Chinese immigrants, as well as focus group meetings. Census data were also examined, as well as opinion polls and a specially designed bilingual online survey. Media analysis was conducted on both Maori and Chinese language media in order to examine the possible influence of these on the popular views of both groups.

Early interactions between Maori and Chinese centred around market garden semi-rural regions, and the results of the research showed that the relationship between the two groups was close and cordial during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Fond memories of warm interactions are still evident in the rural regions where Chinese market gardens once flourished.

In contrast, contemporary relationships unfolding in urban centres involve considerable tension and social distance between the two ethnic groups. Each group tends to stereotype the other, and it is common for both to feel that the Government favours the other. In smaller centres, where there are more frequent, meaningful social contacts between the groups, there is much less stereotyping and racial fear.

The results show that the Chinese view of Maori appears negative on the surface, but their responses to specific issues indicate that they are more positive and sympathetic towards Maori than Pakeha on specific Treaty issues. Chinese views of Maori are more sophisticated than expected: more multi-faceted and dynamic. There is evidence that Chinese empathy towards Maori stems from their feeling of being “equally marginalised” by Pakeha.

The study included a group of people with mixed Maori-Chinese descent, and showed that they often feel “caught in between”. The younger generation in this group are typically more comfortable with their mixed heritage than their parents or grandparents. Many younger Maori-Chinese people have typically shown great pride in their mixed heritage, which they increasingly regard as an asset rather than a liability.

The Chinese media research showed that Maori issues loom rather large on the Chinese horizon and there is a general desire to know more about Maori because they were regarded as very important to the acceptance of the Chinese by New Zealand society.

The research on Maori media found no reporting of Maori relationships with, or opinions of, Chinese in the nineteenth century Maori newspapers. A twentieth century government publication for Maori, however, contained some positive reporting and noted the Maori-Asian ancestral connections, and Maori Television featured a major documentary series on China and several documentaries relating to Chinese, as well as a children’s cartoon series based on a Chinese folk hero.

The study found that social contact between Maori and Chinese and acculturation of Chinese migrants could both be key drivers for a better Maori-Chinese relationship, and the longer immigrants stay in New Zealand, the more sympathetic they become towards Maori. Overall, the results of this research will help provide a basis of knowledge from which better ethnic relations could develop.

For more information contact:

Assoc Prof Manying Ip

The University of Auckland

my.ip@auckland.ac.nz